UNESCO World Heritage Site #155: City of Quito

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 03:03 PM PST

Quito, the capital of Ecuador, was founded in the 16th century on the ruins of an Inca city and stands at an altitude of 2,850 m. Despite the 1917 earthquake, the city has the best-preserved, least altered historic centre in Latin America. The monasteries of San Francisco and Santo Domingo, and the Church and Jesuit College of La Compañía, with their rich interiors, are pure examples of the ‘Baroque school of Quito’, which is a fusion of Spanish, Italian, Moorish, Flemish and indigenous art.

Quito was the first cultural World Heritage site and the second overall after the Galapagos Islands. Quito is considered to be one of the best preserved Spanish colonial cities in Latin American and the best capital city. The highlight of the old city to me was the cathedral. If you should find yourself at the Quito Cathedral, check out the gargoyles on the outside. They are all animals you will find in Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, including marine iguanas and tortoises.

View my complete list of UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Originally posted on the Everything Everywhere Travel Blog. Discover great travel photos.

The Absurdity Which Is The New7Wonders of Nature

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 10:28 AM PST

Underground River in Puerto Princessa, Philippines - One of the New7Wonders of Nature

If you have been paying attention to the news the last several days, you might have heard that the New7Wonders Foundation released their list of the New7Wonders of Nature. You also might remember a similar announcement a few years ago for the New7Wonders of the World. Here is the list they released:

Amazon Rainforest and River
Halong Bay
Iguaçu Falls
Jeju Island
Komodo Island
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Table Mountain

If you haven’t seen the list before, you might be scratching your head about some of these. Jeju Island? Puerto Princesa Underground River? If you think about it a bit more you’ll probably realize that a bunch of things are missing: The Grand Canyon, the Galapagos Islands, Victoria Falls, Ngorongoro Crater, and Mount Everest just to name a few.

Of the sites listed, I’d say only one, the Amazon Basin, is really a no brainer which should be included. Two I’d consider marginal: Iguacu Falls and Halong Bay. The other four are just ridiculous.

Puerto Princessa Underground River: I’ve been there. It is interesting, but probably not even the most significant natural site in the Philippines. I’d put the Taal Volcano above it and maybe the Chocolate Hills. Yes, it is the longest underground river in the world, but I’m not sure that is that big of a deal. Filipinos are notorious for voting in online polls. If it is something which can be spun as a matter of national pride, Filipinos will come out in force online, which is exactly what they did here.
Jeju Island. Maybe the worst selection on the list. South Korea is a big rich country and the government put on a HUGE campaign to get people to vote….and vote they did. I actually considered visiting Jeju Island when I was in South Korea but passed because I thought there were better things to see. This has always been a marginal vacation destination for Koreans and through sheer force of will they got it listed at a UNESCO site (justifiable) and now this. Also, if you don’t know, South Korea is one of the most wired countries on Earth and you could vote on the internet.
Komodo Island. I’ll grant you that Komodo Dragons are cool, but no one would care about the island if they weren’t there. Again, I don’t think it is even the most significant thing in Indonesia. Mount Bromo and Ujung Kulon National Park probably are more interesting and that doesn’t even include the amazing things in Sumatra, Borneo or Papua.
Table Mountain. The only reason why Table Mountain is considered special is because there is a city situated below it. It is the city which makes it special. Take away Cape Town and Table Mountain is just another mesa like any other you can find in Africa, Australia or the American West.

The term wonder has no meaning if you don't include the Grand Canyon

I don’t even know where to begin with how flawed the entire process of selecting these sites is. For starters, the entire operation is nothing more than a cynical attempt to get money from a fake national competition. Unlike the World Cup or the Olympics, this is a chance for countries to compete on something less than skill ability or talent.

The voting process is the least scientific thing you’ll find. People can vote multiple times. Governments at the national and local level spent millions campaigning to get people to vote. At the various travel conferences I traveled to this year I personally saw pitches from Israel, Jordan, Canada, South Korea, Brazil, UAE, Ecuador, India, South Africa, Philippines, Indonesia and probably a few I can’t even remember.

Somehow, the tourist boards of countries around the world have got suckered into playing this game, and the only real winner is Bernard Weber, Chairman of the New7Wonders Foundation and all the telephone companies who are making money off of everyone’s text voting.

You’ll also notice that the winners all have something in common: they are mostly developing countries with large populations. Brazil, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam and South Africa all fit this category. South Korea is also populous but a bit richer. Brazil, South Korea, Indonesia and the Philippines have vibrant online communities.

The biggest tragedy to this voting process is that it turns what could be a genuinely construction discussion about the greatest place out planet has to offer, into a crass attempt to exploit nationalism.

If I had to create a personal list, here is what it would look like:

Mount Everest
Great Barrier Reef
Antarctica
Amazon River Basin
Ungoroungoro Crater
Galapagos Islands
Grand Canyon

They just announced yet another contest to pick the world’s greatest cities. If you want, feel free to create your own list, share it with others and talk about it. However, please do not cast a vote in this ridiculous competition.

Originally posted on the Everything Everywhere Travel Blog. Discover great travel photos.